Guiding Destinations Toward a More Sustainable Future
Destination stewardship is at the heart of sustainable tourism. We bring together global knowledge, standards, and insights to guide destinations with clarity and purpose, creating value for visitors, empowering local people, and strengthening communities. Informed, responsible stewardship helps places truly thrive.
GSTC Destination Standard
The GSTC Destination Standard (GSTC-D), formerly the GSTC Destination Criteria, is built on decades of global experience in sustainable tourism. It draws from international guidelines and best practices and was developed through extensive, multilingual consultation across developed and developing countries. Indicators were screened for relevance and practicality, tested worldwide, and designed to apply across diverse destination types and contexts. They are arranged in four sections: (A) Sustainable management; (B) Socioeconomic impacts; (C) Cultural impacts; and (D) Environmental impacts.
Destination Stewardship Report
The Destination Stewardship Report is a collaboration between the Destination Stewardship Center, Center for Responsible Travel, and Global Sustainable Tourism Council. Our goal is to provide practical information and insights useful to anyone whose work or interests involve improving destination stewardship.
Destination Stewardship Yearbook
The Destination Stewardship Yearbooks are collections of articles from the Destination Stewardship Reports (DSRs), co-produced by the Global Sustainable Tourism Council (GSTC), the Center for Responsible Travel (CREST), and the Destination Stewardship Center (DSC).
Latest Articles
Stay up to date with the latest insights on responsible travel and destination stewardship. Discover expert perspectives, emerging trends, and practical strategies to foster sustainable destinations worldwide.
- Saving the Spinners: Fernando de Noronha Knows How
- Thai Villagers Save Themselves with Tourism
- OCTO: Community-led Monitoring for MPAs
Tools and Resources
Destination Self-Assessment Tool
The Destination Self-Assessment Tool is a free, web-based questionnaire designed for destination managers to evaluate their sustainability performance against the GSTC Destination Standard. Use a simple “yes,” “no,” or “in progress” format to identify strengths and improvement areas. This resource provides a structured approach for all who are committed to destination stewardship to measure progress across four pillars of sustainability.
Destination Stewardship Starter Kit
The Destination Stewardship Starter Kit was developed to support destinations in their transition towards a stewardship approach. It provides a practical roadmap to prioritizing governance and management strategy, creating a baseline for measurement, and setting achievable targets for sustainable tourism development. These steps serve as a guide and do not have to be followed in order, as the process varies by destination.
Destination Stewardship Course
The Destination Stewardship Course is specifically designed for destination managers, tourism boards, and policymakers, providing practical guidance on sustainable destination management. This self-paced course includes an in-depth exploration of the GSTC Destination Standard, valuable tools and resources, and real-world case studies that illustrate how to apply sustainability best practices at the destination level effectively.
Destination Assessment
The GSTC Destination Assessment equips destination management teams to apply the GSTC Standards, evaluate sustainability performance, benchmark against a globally recognized framework, and identify targeted opportunities for continuous improvement.
Submit Case Studies and Practical Insights
We welcome case studies, impact stories, and practical insights from destinations and partners working with sustainable tourism approaches. By sharing your experience, you help others learn from real-world applications of destination stewardship and the adoption of the GSTC Destination Standard and GSTC framework.
Submissions may include examples of:
- Alignment with the GSTC Destination Standard or a specific criterion
- Destination planning or management best practices
- Outcomes and lessons learned from using GSTC tools, training, or resources
- Measurable environmental, social, cultural, or economic impacts
- Collaborative approaches involving local stakeholders
Selected contributions will be reviewed and featured to support learning and continuous improvement across destinations worldwide.
For the Destination Stewardship Report, click here to review the editorial guidelines for submissions.
A1 Case Studies: Sustainable Destination Management
We invite destinations to share case studies aligned with Criterion A1 of the GSTC Destination Standard, highlighting practical approaches to sustainable destination management. By contributing an A1 case study, you help build shared knowledge on how destinations apply structured management systems to support long-term sustainability and continuous improvement.